Elliotte Friedman paints grim picture for Pittsburgh Penguins fans

It's going to be a critical offseason for the Pittsburgh Penguins and general manager Ron Hextall in particular. Of course, he's going to be tasked with being able to keep his team competitive while also trying to re-sign several key free-agents, including the likes of Evgeni Malkin, Kris Letang, Rickard Rakell, and others. 

All good things must come to an end, and there has been plenty of speculation regarding the future of Malkin in Pittsburgh, the only NHL city that he's ever known. He'll forever be a Steel City sports legend, having played key roles in three Penguins Stanley Cup championships that also included winning the Conn Smythe Trophy as Playoff MVP in 2009. 

But are the two sides headed for a split? If the latest indication from Sportsnet's Elliotte Friedman are any indication, the could be a very difficult summer for Penguins fans. While making an appearance on The Pat McAfee Show, Friedman explained that it doesn't appear as though any progress is being made. 

"I just heard the money isn't close," Friedman said. 

"I think with Malkin, I think the biggest issue was dollars," he continued. "I think they were willing to agree on term, and they really talked about that he'd sign for three years to fit in with the same term as Crosby, but I heard that the money wasn't close. I don't know where that will go". 

And when it comes to Letang, Friedman didn't exactly paint a rosy picture on that end, either. 

“I heard the issue there was [that] someone told me they thought about $1.25 million apart per year," he said.

The 36-year-old Russian forward has just completed an eight-year contract that paid him an average of $9.5 million per year. Meanwhile, Letang is coming off an eight-year, $58 million deal of his own. 

As of now, the Penguins have $23 million in projected cap space available, with 16 players signed for the 2022-23 season.